The present invention relates to a compressed air engine and a flying object equipped with the air engine, in which a compressed air is injected into a compressed air container, and the compressed air is discharged to operate the engine by the force of the compressed air. More specifically, the present invention relates to a compressed air engine and a flying object equipped with the air engine, in which a compressed air is injected into a compressed air container, and the compressed air is discharged at a certain discharge rate, so that the discharging air would drive the compressed air engine. A pair of wings which are assembled to the compressed air engine are made flapped, and thus, lifting and propulsion forces are generated.
Model planes are a kind of most popular sports articles for adults as well as for children. So far, many kinds of model planes have been manufactured for being used as toys, as sports articles and as recreation articles.
The model planes that have been manufactured so far can be classified into: those having no power-driving means; and those having a power-driving means. The model planes that are provided with the power-driving means include: propeller planes, jet planes, and helicopters with helical wings. They are usually controlled with a radio controller.
The present inventors have been making efforts to get rid of the conception of the conventional model planes to develop a flying object resorting to the flapping motions of wings like birds and insects.
The present inventor utilized the principle that insects and birds fly by the flapping motions of their wings. Thus, a compressed air was injected into a compressed air container to a certain level of pressure, and then, the compressed air was discharged out of the compressed air container, so that a compressed air engine can be operated by the discharge force of the compressed air. Thus two pairs of wings which were assembled to the compressed air engine were made perform the flapping motions, thereby generating lifting and propulsion forces. This was filed for a patent application under Korean Patent Application No. 2000-43618 (filed on Jul. 28, 2000), and based on this, a PCT application was filed under PCT Application No. PCT/KR01/00932 (field on Jun. 1, 2001).
The present inventor improved the above PCT application to develop a compressed air engine and a flying object equipped with the engine, in which only one pair of wings are provided.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a compressed air engine in which a compressed air is injected into a compressed air container, and the compressed air is discharged at a certain discharge rate to generate a propulsion force, thereby making it possible to fly.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a flying object in which a compressed air is injected into a compressed air container, and the compressed air is discharged at a certain discharge rate to make a pair of wings perform flapping motions, thereby making it possible to fly.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a flying object in which a compressed air container and a pair of wings are assembled to the compressed air engine in a simple manner, and if needed, a head part is assembled also in a simple manner, thereby making it possible to use it in a simple manner.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a flying object in which a portable pump is used to inject the compressed air, thereby making it possible to fly in a simple manner.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a flying object in which the pair of the wings assembled to the compressed air engine are made flap up and down to generate a propulsion force, thereby making it possible to fly.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a flying object in which the pair of the wings assembled to the compressed air engine are made flap up and down and perform twisting motions within an angular range of about 15xc2x0.
The above objects and other objects are achieved by the present invention which is described in detail below.
In achieving the above objects, the flying object according to the present invention includes: a compressed air engine, the compressed air engine including: a top member 11 provided with an air inlet 16; an upper cylinder 12 assembled to the top member; a lower cylinder 13 assembled to the upper cylinder; a bottom member 14 assembled to the lower cylinder; an air pipe 15 connected between the top member and the bottom member, for passing of a compressed air; a shuttle 20 for performing up/down movements within a cylinder (consisting of the upper and lower cylinders) so as to make a pair of wings perform flapping motions; and a pair of pistons 21a and 21b for performing reciprocating movements over and under the shuttle respectively;
the pair of the wings being symmetrically and pivotally assembled to the shuttle through securing shafts so as to perform up/down movements in accordance with the up/down movements of the shuttle; and
a compressed air container 2 assembled to the bottom of the bottom member, for storing the compressed air.
In the flying object of the present invention, a compressed air is injected into the compressed air container to a certain level of pressure by using a pump, and the compressed air is discharged out of the compressed air container at a certain discharge rate, so that the upper and lower pistons 21a and 21b can drive the shuttle 20 up and down so as to make the pair of the wings of the shuttle 20 flap up and down, thereby generating propulsion forces.